Heart of a Dragon

By George L. Nitti 

Over the years, Cecil Burrowes has showcased his fine airbrushing talents on a slew of award-winning tow trucks with themes as diverse as the Godfather, Batman, Clowns, Tribal Art, the Spirit Ride and much more. His realistic depictions and eye-popping colors vividly bring to life a host of characters and a variety of designs. This year Burrowes is back with yet another thematic, colorful play – a menagerie of dragons that convey intensity, determination and passion. 

“For 3 months or so I stayed in Sarasota, Fla., taking a room at Fastway Towing, as I worked on this project,” said Burrowes. “The owner John wanted me to do the Transformers, but I told him it was going to take too long. There were too many intricate parts.”  

After careful research consulting online sources and magazines, Burrowes came up with a dragon theme. He said, “At first it was going to be several small dragons. But things change as you go along.” 

Visually sizing up the Ford 2020 F550 with a light-duty Chevron, Burrowes said that he “visually placed the artwork on the truck,” asking himself a question like “How much of the door do I want to take up?”  

Fortunately for Burrowes, due to his stellar reputation, he often has carte blanche in executing his designs. He said, “Most people I do work for trust my judgement. Very rarely do I have to do a drawing to show people.” 

One picture of a dragon he used was sitting on a rock, which Burrowes transformed into a jade green, fiery dragon sitting on a bed of skulls. “It was just what the owner wanted.”  

Keeping the truck colorful, Burrowes painted several other dragons on the unit having shades of green, gold and red, each intricately constructed, compositionally balanced against a sky background. Burrowes said, “It was very time consuming.”  

The dragon on the hood is a seething bundle of intensity, sure to scare off any evil thoughts a person might have to thwart a repossession of their vehicle. 

At the American Towman Exposition November of 2021, Burrowes intensity, determination and passion helped him clear several obstacles along the way to make it to the Tow Pageant, a 15-hour ride from Sarasota to Baltimore.  

Sometimes it takes a little dragon breath to get where you are going. Unfortunately, dragons sometimes have their share of misfortune. The outcome of this journey didn’t turn out as intended but there is always next year. 

Brag @ TIW!  

Should your truck be featured here? Send a few pics and your contact information to the editor at georgenitti@gmail.com. You might even be selected to go in print, too, in American Towman magazine!